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2025 will be a milestone year for me, God willing, because it is the year I will turn the same age my dad was when he lost his very short battle with cancer.

He died when I was 17, and back then, 44 seemed SO old. My dad owned a popular restaurant and catering business and a beautiful home, had five kids, was happily married to my mom, and was a powerful, charismatic presence.

Now, as I approach the same age, I realize just how young he was and how his life was really just beginning.

Losing him at such a young age has given me a unique perspective on how precious my time is and has majorly impacted my priorities. It is also why I spend time every Friday reflecting on how I spend my time every single week.

As I plan for 2025, I reviewed all my notes over the past year and noticed some consistent themes of things I didn’t enjoy or realizations I had that I ignored for MONTHS.

And this is NOT the year for me to hold onto anything that does not serve me.

So, in honor of my dad, one of my all-time favorite humans in the entire world and the person who has had the most significant impact on who I am today, here are the 11 things I’m saying BYEEEEE to in 2025. (in no particular order)

01 | Taking Too Long To Make A Decision

O.M.G did I ever go round and round in 2024 on a few specific challenges I experienced. I talked to everyone and their mom about these things and in hindsight, I wasted SO MUCH TIME and cost my company SO MUCH MONEY.

In 2025, if I say bye to nothing else but this, it will be a game changer.

In reviewing my weekly notes about what went well/what didn’t, the writing was on the wall. I knew the answers to these challenges right when they presented themselves but I ignored my instincts and didn’t trust myself. I was the queen of overthinking. I pulled everyone into my deliberations which only muddied the waters and cost me more time, energy, and money in the process.

What a waste.

This brings me to the next thing I’m saying goodbye to in 2025:

02 | Holding Onto Things for Too Long

As a former wedding planner who had a backup plan for the backup plan, one might say I am a bit of a control freak.

But years of therapy have taught me why I feel the need for control.

Thinking through all the things that could go wrong is how I protect myself from getting hit with a trauma (like finding out my dad only had ten weeks to live when I was just 17 years old or finding out my mom’s cancer had come back after she was NED for two years).

Having a plan makes me feel like I actually DO have control.

2024 was a big year of giving away some control, in a sense, through delegation.

This had to happen largely in part because two of my long time team members were taking extended leaves. Maria was out for three months to hike the Appalachian (yes, she finished it in three months even though it typically takes six months-wild!!) and Ashlee has been out on maternity leave since end of September.

Both of these forced us to get things really buttoned up as we transitioned tasks and brought on more help (we welcomed Casie in January 2024 in preparation for this).

With a fresh set of eyes (Casie’s), we realized how much I was still holding onto so I made it my goal to delegate as much as possible.

And let me tell you: IT WAS (and is) HARD.

This is a work in progress.

I have to actively remind myself to delegate certain things and I consistently do time audits to make sure I’m not in the weeds.

In 2025, I will continue to delegate and outsource more as I work through my fear of losing control.

The second part of this is holding onto things that aren’t working anymore out of guilt or out of fear of being perceived as someone who is flaky or operating without a plan.

We’ve all seen it- the business owner who launches something new every week or changes their prices every day or changes their title or IG profile every time they’re online or is always doing the next big thing.

Yeah, NO. That isn’t me and will never be me because I have a clear vision for my company. BUT it is difficult for me to let things go once I start them or if I *believe* they were part of my vision.

This brings me to the next thing I’m saying bye to in 2025:

03 | Not Running All Decisions Through A Standard Matrix

I worked HARD to be more intentional with what I rolled out in 2024 and what I passed on.

There are certain things I do in my business that absolutely light me up - I could do them all day every day with zero preparation. Just turn on the Zoom or give me a blank Google Doc and let me go.

But there are also some things I do in my business that I feel pulled to do because of repeated requests from designers or because it seems like something I should do.

Earlier in the year, I joined a workshop hosted by a product manager who shared that she ran every product her company launched through a simple matrix, weighing time, value, alignment, revenue, and impact.

If it scored below a specific number, it was a pass. If it scored above, it was a go.

I used this on a few products we launched and it was very helpful and made me really think about what we offered. In hindsight, I realize this matrix could have helped me with SO many other decisions, not just products we launched.

So, in 2025, I’m going to use this matrix on everything - expenses, hires, business decisions, resources, and products (free and paid).

04 | Energy Vampires

We all have those people or activities that after engaging with them, we feel a.b.s.o.l.u.t.e.l.y drained.

Heck, sometimes it’s even while we’re doing them that we can feel the life being sucked out of us.

It’s like that scene from The Holiday where Kate Winslet wakes up in Cameron Diaz’s beautiful CA home and is listening to music and dancing because she is so happy at this new possibility for her life…and then she gets a call from her toxic ex-boyfriend and she turns off the music, closes the shades, and goes right back to bed, pulling the blankets over her head. You can see the joy leaving her body.

I’m pretty good about not letting these types of people into my life - I attribute it to years of self reflection (therapy) and my experience of losing both my parents. I am very strict with who and what I allow into my life, and largely in part because I know how much energy I pour into my people and my priorities.

But this year was a HARD year. I found several former clients who were selling or licensing my IP without my permission, in direct violation of our contracts, and a business coach in Australia who was infringing my copyrighted materials and using my IP without my permission.

Uncovering these things one after another, starting in September, just about broke me. In fact, I am still dealing with all but one of these women.

I would never wish this experience on my worst enemy.

But, it made me realize just how much it took from me - more than just the money. It depleted me. Left me with very little energy for my clients, my team, my family, myself.

When I focused on these unethical businesses and people, the negativity became HUGE. It took over.

So, while I can’t let go of this (businesses using my IP for financial gain without my permission) I have put better processes and protections in place for when this happens and someone on my team monitors this regularly so I am not consumed by it.

This is an extreme example of an energy vampire in my business but I am also saying bye to other energy vampires as well for 2025. For me, this is using the Instagram app and (back to #1) letting myself waffle in indecision.

05 | Spreading Myself Too Thin

We accomplished a LOT in 2024 and I often found myself saying, “Casie, will you make sure I don’t forget that we can’t schedule things like this” or “Casie, will you please remind me how I felt after this launch so we spread this out better next time?” or “Team, don’t let me do this again!!”

I am passionate about the work we do with designers and know the results we get business owners (ahem, see my last point where I mention the former clients we worked with who have now positioned themselves as business coaches/business strategists/systems strategists who are teaching their “process” - the ones I created for them - because they were so game-changing - to other designers…sigh).

But if there is something I know I can create or share that will help designers, whether it’s a free resource or a paid one, I want to get it out there as fast as possible.

As a two-time business owner, I enjoy marketing and selling because I KNOW how much my products and services and advice can help people.

But this also means I can get swept up in the excitement and forget to see how something fits into the larger scheme of my business and my life.

For example, I know I need a lot of time between things. I can’t have a big deliverable every week. It’s too hard.

I know this. I remember this from our 1:1 client work and our intensives. We could NOT do one every week. The cadence was too intense for us. But I ignored that lesson and found myself going week after week with big deliverables.

That is not sustainable for me.

So this year I’m focusing on adding even more whitespace into my calendar, prioritizing the cadence I know works best for my work style and lifestyle, and thinking through everything on my schedule (not just work stuff but family and personal stuff and my natural rhythms too).

This leads me perfectly into the next thing I’m saying goodbye to in 2025:

06 | Having Appointments On My Calendar Every Day

I don’t know about you but if I have an appointment on my calendar for 1 pm, I look at the entire morning as if it’s wasted - you know, because I have an appointment later.

Ha.

I am a huge advocate for my health and I am what insurers call a “super user”. I do every preventative appointment I can and work with a genetic counselor to make sure I am staying in front of anything I am at risk for.

I also have three kids who have a lot of activities, a team, personal health goals, a husband who travels often, an absolute terror of a dog, and clients whose success I am committed to.

So my calendar can get full really quickly.

There were a few weeks this past year where I had something on my calendar every.single.day. Like a set appointment or multiple appointments every day of the week.

And it felt SO disruptive.

Now, I know some people thrive with a full calendar.

I am not one of them.

I know this about myself.

I thrive with whitespace. Yes, I love a good deadline, but whitespace on my calendar, large blocks of time to focus on big projects - that is my sweet spot.

I do much better having everything on one day - back to back. Yes, I can do four hour long zooms in a single day. But I can’t do one hour long zoom every day.

So, in 2025 I am saying hey, girl, hey to a more consolidated schedule (appointments only ONE day per week when possible) and blocking off entire days for no calls.

I am even going to try to block off one day per week for writing. An entire day.

I don’t think it will work, but it’s on the goal list for now.

🤷

We’ll see what happens.

07 | Chronic Back Pain

Oh my goodness. After having my second daughter, I ended up with a hernia and some other stomach issues that impacted my ability to focus on my abs. This means I went into my next pregnancy with the weakest core I ever had. I carried my third daughter until almost 42 weeks (my other daughters came at 37 and 38 weeks) and she was a BEAST when she came out. Two pounds bigger than my other girls and she completely destroyed my stomach. Four-finger diastasis recti from top to bottom. I even consulted a surgeon to repair it and he said it was too far gone to fix.

😱

Needless to say, without a strong core and a job that has me sitting at my desk often, it’s not easy to have a pain free back.

For years I have struggled with chronic lower back pain, even with doing PT, acupuncture, yoga, dry needling, massage, pilates, and chiropractic adjustments.

It wasn’t until this year I started to see some relief from this combination:

Daily physical therapy stretches (10 mins/day) +
Pilates +
Walking on my desk treadmill (sitting less)

I started taking calls from my desk treadmill and it made such a difference. In 2025, I plan to do all admin, all team calls and coffee chats, and any tasks I’m dreading while on my desk treadmill.

I am too young to have back pain and know I can prevent it from getting worse. I never want to regret not taking care of this now.

08 | Physical and Mental Clutter

I’m not an interior designer, but man alive, I know the power of good design and its impact on the people who inhabit a space. ← I think this is part of what makes me so passionate about what I do: because I believe so wholeheartedly in what YOU do.

If my office is a mess, guess what, my workday feels chaotic and I’m not as productive.

If my mental to-do list feels crazy and chaotic, you guessed it, I am distracted and inefficient while at work and then sidetracked and impatient with my kids.

So in 2025 I am saying BYE to jumping into work or family time without first prioritizing a few minutes to clear the clutter both physically AND mentally.

What this means for me, and something I started doing this year, is I have a daily recurring task that has anything family related on it. I dump all my family/kid tasks there so they aren’t forgotten. Just knowing I have a place with those things captured is a huge weight off my shoulders.

I despise rushing from one thing to the next leaving a mess behind me, and I know I do better when I have time to close out one thing before moving to the next. Even little things, like putting my desk treadmill away or clearing off my desk before I jump into a new project or making sure my water is full before I dive into something new (because I know I won’t stop to get more water once I am deep into something which means I won’t drink enough water!). These little actions are so helpful in setting me up to be productive and efficient while I’m working (meaning I am able to make the most of my precious time).

Making the most of my limited time is key and that’s why in 2025 saying goodbye to this next one is critical:

09 | Projects That Don’t Align With My Vision

This one is pretty obvious and I only had a few missteps this year, but I do have this draw toward a certain thing and I KNOW it doesn’t align with my vision but for some reason I keep thinking I should do it. (I’m not going to say what it is, sorry). My team even questions me when I talk about it, asking WHY I would want to do this one particular thing.

So, just like in #3, if something doesn’t align with my vision, like low profit or low impact projects or opportunities that aren’t aligned or don’t offer an equal energy exchange, I’m not doing them.

I know my hourly expense rate and the value I bring to the table, and in 2025, I will be more cognizant of this with all my decisions.

Something else that’s definitely not aligned, that I am EAGER to say goodbye bye to in 2025:

10 | Forcing Myself to Work When I Have Hit a Wall

Forcing myself to work when I’ve hit a wall or because “it’s the workday” is something I’ve done this past year, and I’m not proud of it.

Only since September (when finding out former clients were selling my stuff w/o permission and then in November, when I found a business coach/mentor was using my blog posts word for word w/o my permission) have I allowed myself to be better about this.

I know that when I have hit a wall or I feel completely depleted, I am not an asset to my company.

In fact, I am a HUGE cost to my business when I am in that state of mind.

→ I don't make good decisions.

→ I waste time and am not efficient.

→ I inject myself into things I don’t need to be involved in (sorry, team!).

In 2025, I am going to work more on recognizing when I’ve hit a wall so I can intentionally step away, knowing it is the best move. EVEN if it’s a workday and I *should* be working.

I would rather feel good about tackling a home project or doing a solid workout with 100% focus than feel brain dead and unproductive sitting at my desk for 6 hours giving something 25% effort and not doing a good job.

This brings me to the final thing I’m saying goodbye to in 2025:

11 | Holding Onto Goals I Haven’t Achieved

Every year as I reflect on my goals, I see patterns. Goals that are always achieved (or I should say, categories or types of goals I always achieve) and goals that are never achieved, yet keep moving to the next year's goal list.

What is this all about?

Can I not say goodbye to something? Do I not want something enough? Is it out of alignment? Is something else taking priority instead?

Going back to #1, #3, and #8: I want to say bye to keeping things on my goal list for years if I do NOTHING during the year to make progress on them and if they instead continue to add “noise” or clutter to my path.

But I think this will require me to do a bit of soul searching first (note to self: add this to the list to talk to my therapist about).

Why are these things still on the list if they aren’t a priority?
What is getting in the way?
Is it my actual workload and lack of time (or should I say, the reality of my time)?
Or is it fear or some other mindset block?

One thing I’ve learned this year in a BIG way is that mindset matters and can stop you in your tracks if you let it (seriously, watch Simone Biles Rising and hear how mindset impacted an Olympic athlete who has been dubbed the greatest of all time ever).

I have much to learn and each new stage of business and life and motherhood requires a new version of myself.

Growth is exciting, but it’s never linear.

As I step into the new year with more clarity, confidence, and life experience, I’m excited to say goodbye to the things that no longer serve me. Turning 44 will be a significant turning point and my reminder that life is too short to spend on things that don't align with my vision or values.

While I’m shedding the old, I’m also making space for the new—projects, people, and experiences that energize me, help my business thrive, have the most significant impact on the design industry, and allow me to be more present with my three little girls.